5 Ingredients or Fewer

Beets for this refreshing cold soup were sometimes finely diced, other times coarsely grated. We liked best whichever we were being served, and I still alternate, indiscriminately.

(FARFALLE CON ZUCCHINI) This recipe can be prepared in 45 minutes or less.

Pasteli There are many variations of sesame honey candy from around the Mediterranean and the Middle East — some are hard and crunchy; others, like this Greek version, are chewy. This pasteli is sticky, but using a nonstick bakeware liner such as a Silpat pad will help you unmold the candy with ease. Active time: 20 min Start to finish: 1 1/4 hr

Creamed spinach and baked sweet potatoes drizzled with maple syrup make good partners for these crispy cutlets. Top vanilla frozen yogurt with fudge sauce and a few raspberries for dessert.

To begin, fill a platter with slices of bresaola and mozzarella, and also serve a warm salad of roasted peppers. The spinach, basil and ricotta puree and orzo with lemon peel are terrific with the chicken, as is a dry white wine like a Greco di Tufo. Dessert should have an Italian accent, too: Try slices of fresh pears topped with mascarpone and a warm walnut-caramel sauce.

A simple but very flavorful main course that can be served with equal ease for a sit-down or buffet dinner.

The onions can be made 3 hours ahead. Let stand at room temperature.

This is my son, Dante's, favorite summer dish at Craft, and it's not hard to figure out why; the white corn, already sweet to begin with, is served in a "cream" derived naturally from puréed corn, further intensifying the corn flavor. Unlike corn on the cob, which is best eaten straight from the field, corn that is a day or two old may work even better here, since some of the natural sugars will have converted to starch, allowing for a thicker cream.

Lemon and thyme give these potatoes color and zip. Make the flavored butter ahead of time to save a step on the big day.

For soft tacos, just fill warm tortillas with the steak and sauce.

I discovered Pot Stickers at about the same time I was introduced to Scallion Cakes. Pan-fried on only one side, the dough for these dumplings is at once crisp and chewy. When I was about eleven years old, I could sometimes devour a dozen of these fried dumplings at one sitting. It was such a sweet pleasure to eat as much as you wanted and still be a skinny child. Filled with pork, cabbage, and a rich broth, every bite was heavenly. The secret of these pot stickers is to reduce the Homemade Chicken Broth until it is concentrated enough to jell when refrigerated. The broth should then be roughly chopped and stirred into the filling mixture right before the dumplings are formed. The Pot Stickers are pan-fried only on one side a few minutes until golden. A little water is added, the lid is placed on the pan, and then, as the dumplings steam-cook, the broth melts. To eat, place a pot sticker in a deep spoon (traditionally, a Chinese porcelain spoon) and sprinkle with a few ginger shreds and a little red rice vinegar. Gently bite into the dumpling and the delicious broth that has now melded with the flavors of the pork filling will burst forth.

When draining the artichokes, turn them upside down to allow more water to escape from the leaves. What to drink: A crisp, dry Sauvignon Blanc is a good choice with this starter and the rest of the menu.

Jazz up the vanilla ice cream in your freezer with this rich, delicious — and easy-to-make — sauce. The recipe uses a bit of melted ice cream rather than whipping cream, so there's one less ingredient to worry about.

Active time: 30 min Start to finish: 1 1/4 hr Savory pastries are a popular element of Turkish cuisine, with a seemingly endless number of shapes and fillings. These little rolls are called sigara böregi, or pastry cigars, because of their shape.

One way to cut down on holiday oven gridlock is to choose a side dish that can be made on top of the stove, like this one.

This recipe is easily doubled if you'd like to make more.